Is it ahead of the curve or ahead of the curb? The original and far more common phrase is ahead of the curve. The curve in question is the kind plotted on a graph, specifically to represent the power produced by a machine. In aeronautics, one wants to be ahead of the power curve, which means there’s more margin for a pilot to maneuver. Being behind the power curve is a potentially dangerous situation. This is part of a complete episode.
In English, you can express skepticism with the classic saying when pigs fly. In Tagalog, a similar sentiment is expressed with a phrase that translates “when the crow turns white, when the heron turns black,” and there’s a Hungarian phrase that...
Dax in Santa Cruz, California, wonders: Now that we’re into the 21st century, when will people stop saying that initial 20 when referring to a year such as 2028 the way we dropped the 19 in the term 1980s and just started referring to the ’80s? This...
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